Posts Tagged ‘dog’

Nearly everyone agrees that San Diego has the perfect weather in the country. Never too cold, never too hot, always just right. And with only a minimal amount of rain every year, San Diego suits a person vacationing with a dog or dogs very well. But the weather in the San Diego area can vary quite a bit. As you move inland from the ocean summer temperatures reach above one hundred degrees F often. But in the central area of San Diego, it will usually remain in the seventies or lower. San Diego is a big city with big city traffic. So you will probably need to drive a car to take your pet where you want to go. Depending on the time of day this can be difficult. Small dogs that can fit into a carrier are allowed on the cities buses and light rail. You will have to carry the dog and the carrier. Another way to transport a pet in San Diego is with the San Diego Pet Driver. These pet taxis will take people with pets around town and to the airport and will also pet sit and walk pets at locations in the city.

Accommodations in San Diego for visiting pet people range from luxurious pet-friendly hotels such as the Loews Coronado Bay Resort, which hosts an annual dog surfing event, and the Palomar San Diego to very pet friendly chain hotels and motels in all price ranges and a large selection of pet-friendly vacation rentals in Pacific Beach, downtown and elsewhere. The main attractions of the city for tourists usually include Balboa Park and the world-famous San Diego Zoo, Sea World, the cities beaches, La Jolla, and a trip or trips to nearby sites such as Tijuana, Mexico and mountain towns such as Julian. Despite the fact that the San Diego Zoo is home to a large number of animals, or perhaps because of it, dogs are not allowed in the zoo. To visit the zoo, if you have two adults with you, you may have to split your time with the dogs or utilize a pet sitter or day kennel in the city. Both the Loews Coronado and the Palomar will provide a pet sitter with prior arrangement. Some of the vacation rentals may as well. Or you can arrange your own. Balboa Park is dog-friendly and has an off-leash dog run as well. Sea World has day kennels on the premises. La Jolla’s quaint shopping streets are very dog-friendly with lots of patio dining for you and your pet. And the beaches, oh the dog-friendly beaches around San Diego are every dog’s dream.

The San Diego Dog Beach is a large off-leash dog beach on the north end of Ocean Beach. It is a 24 hour beach for dogs and is one of the nation’s best off-leash beaches. Also off-leash is Coronado’s Dog Beach. A number of other beaches serving San Diego allow dogs, which must be leashed. Most of Fiesta Island is also open to off-leash dog play.

Shopping, dining and entertainment in San Diego rivals that of most large cities for people and exceeds all expectations for dogs. Where else can you find a shopping center with a built in dog park? In San Diego there are two – Otay Ranch Town Center in Chula Vista and Westfield UTC Mall on La Jolla Village Drive. Leashed dogs will find many accommodating stores at these centers as well as the Horton Plaza downtown. Dining with a dog in San Diego is a pleasure with a number of restaurants offering dog menus. The best of these are probably The Wine Pub for the 21 and older crowd and Terra American Bistro and the Lazy Dog Cafe for families. All areas of the city have dog-friendly dining where your leashed dog can accompany you to the outdoor tables. And in San Diego is is rare for the weather to hinder outdoor dining. Other activities that you can do with your pet are Kayaking, Hiking though many city and hilly parks, carriage rides and boat rentals. Once a year, you can take your dog to a San Diego Padres baseball game at Petco Park.

In the mountain town of Julian, about 45 minutes by car from San Diego, you can dine with your dog, walk the town, visit Cuyamaca Ranch State Park and William Heise County park or camp. If you love to stay at a vacation rental there are a number of pet-friendly vacation rentals in Julian as well. To take a pet across to Tijuana Mexico may require some advance planning. But you can walk across the border, shop a bit in the first few miles of Mexico and walk back across to avoid getting car insurance to drive into Mexico. Another short out of town destination for many tourists would be Legoland in Carlsbad 30 minutes to the north of San Diego. Legoland provides kennels for your dog while you attend the amusement park.

San Diego, by virtue of it’s outdoor qualities and it’s overall pet-friendliness, ranks high for the traveling pet and their families.

St. Augustine Florida is America’s oldest continuously occupied European settlement. It was founded by Spaniard Pedor Menendez de Aviles in 1565. In 1702 most of St. Augustine burnt down and was rebuilt next to the fortress Castillo de San Marcos. This fortress dominates the downtown next to the harbor. St. Augustine today has the old town area, 40 miles of beaches and a population of about 16,000. It is one of the most pet-friendly destinations in Florida. Also, being on the north end of Florida just a bit south of Jacksonville it doesn’t get as hot as further south. For a dog with a lot of hair this is a good thing.

Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, is the place where you could say the United States was born. In 1776 representatives from the 13 original American Colonies signed the Declaration of Independence in Independence Hall and the rest is history. The city was founded by William Penn, a Quaker, in the 1600s. It mostly consisted of the area from the Delaware river to city hall in these earlier times. That area forms the historical district today and the area where visitors to the city focus most of their attention.